Parent's Devotion
by DreamStoryWeaver
Summary: Part 3 of Hatchling Days Relieved While Derek and his clan were taking a crash course in Hatchling care, the problem in the clan had been resolved. But things took a turn for the worse when Lex fell out Elisa’s window and found out he could glide!
1. Ch 1: Brother's Keeper

Mory Rodriguez 10-13-2005© 11:45AM

**Gargoyles** In Hatchling Days relived part 3 (A Parent's Devotion)

**_[Last time on Gargoyles, Elisa took baby Lexington on a visit to her brother, Derek, so he could baby-sit the little hatchling for the night. While Derek and his clan were taking a crash course in Hatchling care, the problem in the clan had been resolved. But things took a turn for the worse when Lex fell out Elisa's window and found out he could use his wings to glide! Jalapenia! Now Baby Lexington is lost in the city!]_**

_**Chp 1: Brother's Keeper**_

Rain had been falling down on the city of Manhattan, New York in sheets. Lighting and thunder had been tearing up the skies in a violent clash for dominance and the wind blew strongly as if running in fear at nearly 55 miles per hour. A night where it made more sense to stay indoors where it was safe, warm, and dry. Yet, none of that mattered in the slightest as Detective Elisa Maze, her partner Matt Bluestone, or to Goliath and his clan as they search through out the city looking for their missing, magically transformed, hatchling, Lexington. They had been in this storm ever since the news of the storm winds had caused Lexington to be blown out the window of Elisa's apartment. Along with Xanatos and his new, robotic, steel clan, they've been fighting the whirling storm while looking everywhere for baby Lex.

"I can't believe this!" cried Elisa as she slowly maneuvered around another turn in the road in her car, "How could I've let this happen?! I should have made sure that window was locked! I can't believe how stupid…"

"Whoa hey, easy partner." Matt interrupted the distressed woman; "It wasn't your fault Mother Nature decided to throw a fit tonight. If you really want to blame someone, blame the weatherman. This baby hit way earlier than he said it would."

"Thanks for trying Matt," the dark hair detective sighed miserable as she kept her eyes focused in front of her, "But I don't think jokes will help right now."

Elisa hadn't been the only one kicking herself at that very moment. Brooklyn had been just as upset as everyone else but he felt the most guilt for allowing this whole mess to start in the first place. For the last few hours he had forced his way threw the unrelenting winds to each and every roof and ally within his field of vision. There could have been a chance that Lexington might have landed on either and would be in hiding from the storm. They were all just thankful the wind was blowing into the city and not for the open waters.

Goliath, Hudson and Angela were high above the city checking the rooftops of the tallest of the buildings and their narrow window frames and ledges. Curious hatchlings were often found exploring and observing in dangerously high, for human, areas back in the days of old. After landing on the Empire State Building Goliath made his report on his mini voice transmitter, "So far he isn't on any of these skyscrapers."

Xanatos had been the one to answered through his Exeo suit's communication relay, "Nothing's showing on my scanners so far…" He informed all whom were listening in as he checked the setting on his robots as well, "My steel clan hasn't found him either. Broadway?"

Broadway and Brooklyn had been searching lower to the ground, in the residential areas where the smaller buildings were clustered close so as to make the differing suburbs, "No, so far we haven't found anything either." Broadway replied into his transmitter as he tried to shield himself from the harsh wind with his wing so as not to be drowned out that the noise.

"Wait…" Narrowing his eyes through the wind and down pore, Brooklyn had just barely been able to see something moving near a large brick house, "I think I see something!"

Without another word he threw himself off the roof in a dive bomb and fought the current until he landed on the ground on all fours, quickly using the momentum to fold his wings around him. Broadway landed next to him, but on his legs and so had to struggle to fold his wings around his shoulders. The wind was getting stronger and would surly blow them back into the air if their wings stayed open. The house was big with dark walls and even darker door, window shutters and roof. The lights were on and a woman's voice could be heard humming from inside. The rich smell of food told the two gargoyles that she was no doubt cooking for her family. Though the shutters were closed from the inside, Brooklyn and Broadway had crouched down and stayed low to the ground, no sense in ruining the peace and tranquility within.

"Are you sure you saw something!?" Broadway called over the wind, hoping that he hadn't been loud enough to attract attention from humans within the building.

"Yes, by the bushes!" Brooklyn called back as led the way through the downpour and towards the said shrubbery.

The rain and wind were making it very difficult to see. However, the lighting had helped to eliminate the yard better but only for a few brief seconds at a time. Soon enough they had managed to reach the bushes, and using their bodies to shield off the wind, they comb through it. As they did so they heard some small sounds and hurried through the foliage. However, when they got passed all the leaves and twigs, they found that the source of sound was a mother cat and her four kittens. The poor creatures were soaked and miserable but mama still had enough fire to hiss and cover her babies. The two dishearten gargoyles reported the false alarm and started to leave. However, at the last moment, Brooklyn stopped in his tracks and doubled back, he couldn't just leave the little family in the wet. He found the cats again and was greeted with the same greeting from mama cat, but this time he saw a small widow that lead to the basement.

Mama cat instantly arched her back up when the gargoyle moved his clawed hand toward them. She watched his talons closely, ready to attack if they went anywhere near her kittens… however, to her curiosity it opened the wall. Cautiously she peeked in hole and found the new dark area to be dry and warm. Seeing a good thing, she had soon begun picking up her young ones, one by one, and making her way to the floor. Broadway had crawled back when he saw Brooklyn still near the bushes. Seeing what was going on, the aqua colored rookery brother positions himself so that he would block the wind while Brooklyn kept the little window open.

"At least they're out of this storm," the brick colored gargoyle sighed as he watched mama cat brought her last baby inside what surely had to be the basement of this human home.

"Don't worry Brooklyn…" The aqua colored gargoyle placed a hand on his Rookery brother's shoulder in comfort, "We went through worse storms than this when we were hatchlings back in Scotland. Lex will do what comes naturally to all hatchlings: find shelter and wait the storm out."

Again, Brooklyn sighed deeply as he followed his rookery brother out onto the sidewalk, "I know… He maybe trapped in a hatchling's body but his still a gargoyle. I just wish we knew for sure that he's alright."

With the wind being as strong as it was they hadn't the need to scale any of the nearby buildings. It had been a simple matter of opening their large wings, allowing the wind to have its way and quickly getting back in control once air born. However, there had been nothing they could do about the sound their wings made when they caught the swirling air. Even with the wind howling loudly the sound of their wings was heard by the being within the house. The curtain opened to the stormy outside world and the lighting reveled, not a human woman, but a female gargoyle, one named Demona. Once the beloved mate of the noble clan leader, Goliath, now a most despised enemy of both the clan and human race. Her blue skin and red hair seem to glow in the light of the electrical flash as she looked around.

"Strange… I could have sworn," A small cry had came from inside her kitchen and so disregarding what she heard before she made her way back. "Don't worry little one," She calmly called as she made sure that her front door had been bolted, "I haven't forgotten you."

In the kitchen, on top of a salt and pepper colored marble countertop, was a large fruit basket. Around said basket were its original contents of assorted fruits left spilled on the fancy tabletop. In their place inside the woven bin was a small bundle of soft clean linen. Within the fabric itself laid a small being rapped nicely among them. He's small, olive green colored hands where stretching over the rim of the basket, and waving; wanting to be picked up.

"Coming, I'm coming," The female gargoyle replied to the urgent clicks and whines as she walked to the kitchen counter. "There now enough of that," The gargress spoke gently as she picked up the little baby in her arms and cradle his bald little head to her collar bone; he small crys quieting down. "Yes, that's much better isn't it?"

The little hatchling clung fiercely to her, for he has had such a terrible scare from the thunder outside their selter and didn't want to be left alone. He still had a bit of a chill from being out in the raging storm and was only too glad to be rapped up and cuddled. The noises of the storm were so loud and frightened him so much that Demona opened one of her wings and covered him with it. This was how all gargoyles give security to their young.

_*****_

**_Flashback: Three hours after the Storm hit_**

Demona had just gathered some items acquired from the bay and was making her way back to her home. Recently, she had found a spell that would allow her to transform into her human form without feeling pain that came with the morphing. Although the physical pain was a small price to pay for her ability to blend with humanity and take advantage of their naiveté, she could do so without feeling it twice everyday. She had just neared her home when a frightened, inhuman cry had caught her attention.

"What…?" The winged female creature had recognized the sound immediately and thus was taken back by the realization. "It can't be…"

The enchanted gargoyle dived toward the park where the sound came from. The cry became louder and more desperate… and so familiar. Demona allowed the wind to carry her through trees using her wings to steer her until she came across a dog. It was barking viciously and digging at the roots of a large oak tree; trying to get at something hiding among them. That something had soon been dug right out of its sanctuary and began running for dear life. Through the flash of lightning Demona saw it, a tiny gargoyle… a hatchling! The dog, seeing that its potential chew toy was getting away, took off after it. The little hatchling race like rabbit, screaming in fright, but it couldn't out run this monster. Before it knew it, the dog pounced and caught it in his mouth ready to shake his head and break its prey's little body. Only it didn't count on something hitting it to the ground. The hatchling fell on the wet grass and saw an adult gargoyle holding the monster that chased him by the fur and roaring angrily at it. Demona threw the dog aside like an old rag doll and watched it run away in fear.

Upon hearing the hatchling crying Demona knelt down to pick the poor thing up. "What?!" Once she had gotten a good look at the babe, she had recognized the features easily, "…Lexington?"

The winged babe had stopped its crying for a moment and looked up at his savior miserably confused. She looked familiar and it comforted him some but he was still very frightened. His eyes were pleading and showed how much he wanted to be taken away from this horrible place. The whole situation brought back old forgotten memories of Scotland and how Demona herself, along with her brothers and sisters, had taught and cared for him and his many siblings' back in the clan. Back, before they had been betrayed by the miserable humans... Though those times were long gone and Demona was now the clan's enemy, she had found that she hadn't been able to bring herself to abandon him. After all he was hatchling now. It just wasn't a gargoyle's way to abandon their young. Her being a female of her ancient race made all the more against her nature.

"Sorcery did this no doubt," A flash of lighting split the skies, scaring the babe into screaming again and shying closer to her bosom. "Oh… shhhh… shhhh, hush now little one. You're not alone anymore. You're with me now." The words were spoken softly so that the reassurance within them would sink in for the tiny, little baby as she had, once again, begun walking to her home, "You're with me now."


	2. Ch 2: Parental Instincts

**_Chapter 2 Parental Instincts_**

_*********_

**_Present Time_**

Demona rubbed the small hatchling's back and soothed him until his crying diminished to no more than a whimper. Apart from a few minor scrapes and bruises, he hadn't been seriously hurt, however she knew he'd be uneasy for quite some time yet. So she simply held and rocked him gently in one arm while using the other to stir the hot stew she was preparing. Gargoyle children are born with teeth and have stronger stomachs than human babies. They are able to eat solid foods within minutes after their birth. So what better way to warm the body during a storm than a hot bowl of stew? Needless to say it was the perfect image of a homemaker with her child.

Little Lex had soon looked up at the female gargoyle that held him. She had started humming an old hymn she had picked up long ago, in order to give the babe something to listen to other than the angry storm outside. This caregiver was certainly different from the other females that held him before. They had all played with him, of course, and had passed him around often and had even made funny faces to squeal at… but they also had made the scaring sounds a.k.a. roaring and/or yelling at other gargoyles… or the ringy thingy a.k.a. Elisa's phone. This one had only done the scaring roars to chase away the fuzzy monsters and she always kept him close by all the time. Now she was making something with a yummy smell instead of opening a tiny cup thingy. The tantalizing smell had made him hungry, yet being as young as he was, naturally he didn't understood the concept of his tummy speaking to him at that time.

"Hungry little one?" she had to chuckle at his confusion, as he looked around for the source of the sound he just heard, "Well our supper will be ready soon. Until then…" Without a second thought, she had lowered the winged babe under her wings more and turned him so that he faced her body. Sounds of cloth being adjusted under her self-made cape could be heard and after a few moments and a few curious squeaks, she felt and heard him suckling, "…you'll have to settle for some milk."

It had been the first time he had actually nursed off of a caregiver. The milk was thinker, richer, and warm… not at all like the odd, somewhat grainy, milk his other caregivers had given him. The hatchling decided he liked what he was drinking a lot more than the old stuff he got from the bottle. Not only that, but he got to stay warm and covered too!

_'Hmmm it's been so long since I've nurtured a hatchling… I had forgotten what it was like.'_ Demona had thought as she tasted the stew, and made sure the vegetables were cooked to a soft pulp._ 'If only I wasn't denied that chance with my own daughter…' _The grip on the wooden spoon had suddenly increased to the point that it snapped like a twig within its owner's talons. Annoyed at the feebly made utensil, the gragress tossed the pieces into a wastebasket and took out another. _'Can't think of that now… I have to focus on the situation at hand. Once Lexington is fed he'll sleep for some time. I'll see if the spell will work while he's asleep then figure out what to do with him afterwards.'_

_*****_

**_Back in the Storm_**

Goliath and the others had still been battling the storm as they continued the desperate search. The wind hadn't even come close to showing even the slightest sighs of calming down. In fact, it had been doing the opposite. It had come to the point where Xanatos regrouped with Goliath and motioned for him and the others to land. With a knowing nod, the huge lavender gargoyle went into a dive, which had signaled his clan to follow. They had a little trouble landing due to the powerful currents, however by David ordering his steel clan robot to land and having them act as anchors, they had managed. Elisa, having seen her friends landing, had stopped in front of the building and braved the storm with Matt to make their way to the roof. With the courtesy of a gentleman, Xanatos waited until all were present before speaking.

It took some time for the other two human members of the group to reach the others, however once were all present, only then did Goliath spoke. "Why did you have us stop the search, Xanatos?" The gargoyle leader asked as the wealthy human took off the helmet of his Exo-suite.

Giving his well-groomed manner, Xanatos replied in his off hand tone, as if they were all enjoying an afternoon in the park. "I figured we could all use a short break."

"We can be wasting time like this!" Brooklyn growled angrily at the implication of the infuriatingly calm businessman. Had he not realized exactly what was at stake? "Lex is still out there and…"

"And unless all of you suddenly gain muscles of steal you won't hold out much longer in the storm." Xanatos's response regrettably knocked some sense into the young gargoyle, "I know how important it is that we find Lexington as soon as possible, but apparently the forces of nature are not being very corporative." The rich businessman eyed Broadway as he rubbed his aching, folded wings, "Therefore I would like to make a suggestion. I could have more steel clan robots help with the search. Since they are able to maneuver in the gale with better ease it would give all of you a chance to rest and regain your strength."

"And it's not long till sunrise." Though this didn't sit well with everyone, Goliath had to take it into thought. The robots did indeed have an advantage over them with those build in thrusters and could easily fly in these harsh winds. "Xanatos is right. The way this storm is brewing there is no chance for us to continue the search until it stops."

"Matt and I can still search on the ground in the car, Goliath." Elisa stated quickly, not wanting to give up that easily yet. As bad as the storm was getting they could still walk in it with the cover of the surrounding buildings. They could still check the allies. "We can keep looking until this storm blows over."

"Not a bad idea," Xanatos nodded as if in agreement. He didn't have to have his exo-suite's sensors to know that it would be long before not even people should be out in this gale. "However with all this debris blowing around you might have trouble."

The brunette detective only glared back at their once sworn, enemy turned, yet still suspicious, ally. "We can handle ourselves."

"Alright, if you insist." Knowing better than to argue with the stubborn woman, the wealthy human replaced the helmet back on. Then as an after thought turned to the gargoyles, "If you prefer to head back to the castle, I'll have my robots escort you back."

"Perhaps that may be a good idea, lad." Hudson advised as he glanced over the horizon of rooftops that lead in the direction of their high altitude home. "It would give us a chance to see if there are any places we might have missed along the way."

"Hmm, very well then," Goliath sighed deeply as he had reluctantly agreed. The decision was not one he fully agreed with, but with the conditions being what they were; to further continue would have been to risk the welfare of the rest of his clan.

Once everything had been said and done, the group had split up again. The Manhattan detectives had gone back down to the empty streets, the clan along with the robots made in the image of their leader went off on sort flights from rooftop to rooftop, while the billionaire stayed for a moment longer to watch them all leave. Xanatos had suggested that 'hopping' from roof to roof might help conserve the use of the gargoyles' wings. Once the two robots that had came with him had begun to escort the gargoyles back to the safety of the castle, Xanatos sent a message to Fox to put more robots online.

*****

**_In the Living Room of Demona's House_**

The storm had increased in strength through the long hours of the night. The rain had been coming down in sheets to the point that it had made things very difficult to see. No living thing could be seen out anywhere outside, not even stray animals were out and about in this large gale. Which had been the complete opposite mood within the bright, warm, and safe household of the two story, red brick building belonging to a one strong career woman by the name of Dominique Destin.

"Aaaammm! Numm numm!" The little hatchling had cried happily as he had been served another spoonful of stew from his caregiver. He lay comfortably within the arm of his caregiver happily chewing on his little mouthful of yummy. Occasionally the sliver utensil would swoop on in and gently scraped off the gravy dripping from his tiny little mouth. "Aaaammm!"

"My, aren't we a hungry little one," Demona couldn't help but laugh as the babe before her squealed happily at the next spoonful coming his way. "There now, all done," the redheaded female gargoyle stated as she wiped his mouth clean of gravy. "Oh, looks like a certain little youngling is tiered," the baby's eyes had begun to droop and had his mouth wide open in a big squeaky yawn, "Come along then."

She gathered the tiny being in her arms and took him back towards the kitchen. With his tummy full and feeling safe and warm, baby Lexington had easily fallen asleep along the way. With the gentleness, now a days rarely shown by this particular gargress, Demona had soon settle the sleeping babe back in the basket and had tucked the cloths around him. She had to smile with affection when she saw how he had curled up in his sleep. His appearance seemed smaller when he did that… more peaceful… and so innocent… Catching herself she shook off the feeling and turned away.

"Now to see to that spell," She told herself to ignore the somewhat unnerved moment. It had been ridiculous. She couldn't be wasting time cooing for a sleeping infant. There where things that had needed to be done while she still had the time to do them. "The sun will rise in a few hours. It'd be the perfect time to test the spell."

For the next hour she had poured through the scroll she had obtain earlier and had gone over what ingredients she had and what she might be missing for the spell… she hadn't truly registered a written word. Try as she might to stay focused on her goal, she simply had not been able to stop thinking about the little hatchling in her kitchen. Many times, every ten or so minutes to be exact, she had found herself at the doorway glancing back at the basket on the table and the little sleeping figure just inside. As odd as it had sounded, with the babe sleeping there… so small, frail, and dependant… needing someone to protect and care for him… for that someone being her… strangely enough for the first time in over a millennium… she had felt… comforted... She had felt… happy.


	3. Ch 3: Coffee Break and Reminiscing

**First and foremost, I apologize profoundly for taking so long to update. I guarantee you I have perfectly good explanation for this and that is… I have just finished wrapping up my final quarter at the Art Institute of Dallas. **

**That's right I'VE FINALLY GRADUATED!!!**

_**Chp. 3 Coffee Break and Reminiscing**_

_*********_

_**Castle Wyvern**_

Brooklyn had been staring out into the rain and frustratingly waiting for it to stop. If it were to continue on like this it'll be sunrise before he and the other could start the search again. Never before in his entire life had he ever felt so helpless. He had always put up a good fight in battle. He was always there to lend a hand to his comrades. When Goliath chose him as his new second in command he did his best to up hold his new responsibilities whenever the burden fell on his shoulders. Yet now, now he felt absolutely useless as he sat alone in the computer room. This was one of Lexington's favorite places in the castle whenever he wanted some time alone. It seemed like the perfect place for the brick-colored gargoyle to go to for privacy.

The others were waiting for a report from either Elisa or Xanatos. Fox had just recently heard from her husband that his progress was giving negative results. Even with the added help of the steel clan and their high octave sensors they still haven't found their lost hatchling. They still haven't heard from Elisa or Matt on their progress and feared that they weren't having much luck in their search as well. Broadway had notice Brooklyn's absence and went off in search of his brother and Second in Command.

_*********_

_**Flashback**_

As Brooklyn had stared into the dark abyss of the storm his mind began to drift back to a time when he and his brothers were young back in Scotland. He and Broadway had grown big enough to be considered youngling in the clan and were allowed more freedom to explore their surroundings. Lexington, however, had been a late hatcher and had been pretty small compared to all the others. Everyone had treated him like a hatchling for the longest time even when he was old enough to join in Hudson's lessons on tracking and wrestling. But because of his size no one had ever took him seriously whenever he wanted to show his skills. Brooklyn remembered one brother that had been particularly cruel to Lex and was always putting him down by literally pushing him around and acting as if he hadn't seen him. He had been one of the much larger younglings with a more fit body that made Brooklyn look scrawny in comparison.

Strange but it was that night that Brooklyn saw how his littlest brother had been treated like this that had sparked his curiosity. Truth be known, that what Lex lacked physically, he made up for in his intellect. His attention to detail made him one of the best trackers of the cluster's generation and his problem solving skills showed he was more than capable of adapting to his surroundings. However, it was apparent that he didn't know how to use these skills in a physical fight. Whenever it was time to practice; their much larger brother would literally pick him up off the ground with ease, walk towards the boundary of the practice circle and drop him on the other side. All the while, boasting that Lex hadn't been a real challenge and wished that Hudson would stop allowing him to humiliate himself. Unfortunately the rest of their brothers found it comical that the 'runt' had even been trying to compete with them and would often leave him out of their sparring practice circle.

Brooklyn may not have been the biggest himself at the time, but he had known what it had been like to be picked on. His big beak and scrawny appearance had been a constant target for the other hatchlings to hit on. However, seeing how much worse off his smaller rookery brother had been, made something within him snap. One night, after their practice was done, Brooklyn had set off to find the web-winged youngling to talk to him. He found his small brother wrestling with a puppet he had made from sticks and leaves. The strange thing had been that Lexington had been taunting it that exact same way their bigger rookery brother had done to him earlier that evening.

"You're no real challenge," The tiny creature told the puppet after shoving it to the ground, "If given half the chance you'd wouldn't even stay on your feet let alone fight." It became pretty clear that he had been reenacting the earlier incident and had reversed the roles with the inanimate object. "Runts are useless in battle so do the clan a favor and go back to the nest!"

Brooklyn had seen the beginning tears to form in those large round eyes and had allowed the sight of them to fuel his annoyance, "You're not going to let him get away with that, are you?" Surprised that someone had actually been watching him, the tiny gargoyle had turn with a jump, "Come over here and show me what you know."

The near hatchling size youngling stared back at his slimmer rookery brother with astound confusion in his large round eyes. "W-what?"

"You heard me," Now the taller youngling had crouched into an attacking position and readied himself for a pounce, "It's a challenge. Let's just see if there's any truth to what our brother said if you were given 'half the chance'."

Ever since that night, young Lex had become part of his small circle with Broadway and they both helped him use his small size to his advantage during paring. Even back then, it wasn't hard to see that he had been a lot faster than them and by working with speed instead of brawn they had managed to create new way of fighting the best suited his size. By the time they had been through, it was time for the next sparring practice, and their biggest brother had been left stun, dizzy, and surly beaten. They had become the inseparable trio since that time on.

_*********_

_**End of Flashback**_

The brick colored second in command hadn't even heard the door opening behind him as he continued to stare out into the night. "Where did it all go wrong?" His larger aqua brother sighed deeply in a mixture of relief and guilt. Relieved for having found that Brooklyn hadn't snuck out into the fierce storm alone, and guilt for the way he had found him. "We used to be so close…" The beaked gargoyle raised a hand to his head in remorse. "Where did it all go so wrong?"

"Brooklyn?"

He turned towards the familiar voice in a mild startled jump. "Broadway, …have they found anything?" His larger brother's dishearten look had answered his question before hand, "Graa! This is all my fault!" The second in command screeched in rage and self-hatred and slammed his fist into the windowsill.

"Don't talk like that Brooklyn." Broadway pleaded as he made his way towards his distressed brother's side. "It not your fault Lex got spelled…"

"But I am the one who started this whole mess!" Frustrated beyond measure, Brooklyn sat on the chair and had held his head in his talons, faced the window and stared out into the rain again. "If I hadn't gotten so mad and jealous of Lex, this never would have happened."

"Everyone gets like that sometimes." The aqua colored gargoyle tried to reason with him as Brooklyn switched to pace in between the computer and the couch at the far end of the room.

"I'm the Second in Command. I'm supposed to set a good example for all of you." The brick colored gargoyle had paced heavily back and forth from one end of the room to another with restless energy. "I'm supposed to keep my cool when things get to me. Not explode on you guys and make you feel inferior to me." Again, in his anger, he hit his fist against the wall. "Not have you sent away like some dog."

"You didn't have Lex sent away." Broadway fisted his hands at his sides as they shook with emotion. All this negative emotional stress had really been getting to him. "We're the ones who suggested it."

"But only after I…"

"Stop it!" Along with growling with frustration, Broadway's eyes had now been brimming with tears. "Just stop it! I'm tiered of hearing everyone blaming themselves for this!" His wings flared opened in his aggravation. The stress of the whole ordeal had finally gotten to him and it was his turn for a rant. "Elisa's blames herself for losing Lex, Fox's blames herself for suggesting that he leave the castle, Goliath blames himself for agreeing to it, I've been blaming myself for just following along and now you?! Just stop it!"

"Broad…"

"No! None of that matters anymore!" the aqua gargoyle had to breathe deeply before continuing, "It's more important now that we find Lexington and bring him home." He wiped at his eyes once to dry them. "It doesn't matter whose fault it is. All that matters is that he's out there and we have to find him before something terrible happens."

"Yeah, you're right," Brooklyn had realized as he watched his brother stared at him, waiting for a response that he needed a leader right now. "All this worrying isn't helping anyone, especially not Lex." Once again he went to the window and this time rested his elbow on it while resting his head in the palm of his hand so that he could think. "If only we had a clue to where the wind had carried him off to."

"Yeah…" The aqua colored gargoyle sighed heavily as he thought about the entire situation for the umpteenth time that night. "It's not like he'd leave a trail after climbing out Elisa's window."

It had been at that very moment that realization had hit the brick-colored gargoyle like a sledgehammer. "Window…"

"Yeah." Broadway conquered what he had thought to be a question. "Lex was playing with the curtains and…"

"Elisa lives in a penthouse…" Brooklyn stated in a near whisper as his mind had suddenly race back through his early memories as a youngling.

The larger, aqua colored gargoyle raised a brow at that second in command of his clan. Normally his white haired didn't bother to state the obvious but the statement was more like he had just realized what their human friend lived in. "Well, yeah Brooklyn, that's why we're never seen…"

"And the wind was blowing in from the… Hudson!" With new hope building in his chest, the beaked gargoyle practically flew pass his brother running down the hallway, "Hudson!"

"Did I miss something?" Broadway stood alone in the computer room for moment of utter confusion before following his rookery brother out into the hallway.

_*********_

_**The Castle Court Room**_

Through the conversation between the two brothers upstairs, the rest of the clan had in the courtroom listening in on Xanatous's report on the growing situation. Owen was at the main computer control with Fox as she was talking to her husband and passing information back and forth. It was obvious the element where not at all happy and had been making it painfully clear by bombarding anything and everything with unrelenting winds and rain. This was how Brooklyn found them.

"My steel clan and I have searched nearly the entire city." Xanatos voice spoke loud and clear through the voice communication link despite the thunderous noise of the storm around him. "And unfortunately we still haven't been able to find him."

"There doesn't seem to be any interference from the storm." Stated the steadfast assistant as he monitored multiple scans and frequencies at once in his ever-efficient manner. "It could be that perhaps Lexington is too small for the sensors to pick up from the sky."

"Guess that means you'll have to fly lower and risk being seen, dear." Fox informed her husband as she watched the screen that monitored the homing beacon in each on the robots. Especially, the larger red dot that represented her beloved husband's signal.

All at once the stone hallway was filled with the near frantic cries of the youthful brick colored gargoyle. "Hudson!" The young, now very breathless Second in Command nearly passed them entirely in his wild sprinting. "Hudson! I think I've figure out a way to find Lexington!"

"Ye have lad?" The old winged Scot looked towards the youth, hoping that he had indeed thought of a way to find the hatchling. "How?"

Soon Broadway had managed to catch up with his brother in time to hear the huffedexplanation. "Alright, remember back in Scotland when you were teaching us how to use our wings to glide?"

Hudson nodded his head showing that he was following him. "Aye"

"Remember when you told us to always fold our wings at a small arch in order land?"

"Aye, but what does that have to…" It was at that moment that the wise elder had recalled a night when a small female youngling forgot to do so. "Your sister."

"She forgot to arch her wings and wound up being blown into that small ledge just below the cliffs of the castle." The wind had been strong that night too, and Brooklyn remembered how helpless she had been in the swirling current. His smaller rookery's specific build would have had a similar effect. "Lex is a web-wing and can't help but stretch his wings straight in a fall. If we can figure out exactly how hard and where the wind was blowing; than we might figure out where he landed and start the search from there when the storm lets up."

"That's a great idea!" Broadway cried happily as he too remembered the incident. The caretakers were able to retrieve their sister with ease despite the current they had that night. "It is just like what happened that night. It just might work."

"Then lets get started then." Hudson made he way to a table were there lay some maps and blank paper. Taking pencil, he began sketching a birds eye view of the city.

"Good thinking Brooklyn." The aqua brother complimented as they began to gather around the table to help with the plan.

"Your idea."


End file.
